


Strange Behavior

by Stargazer19



Series: ZaDr Week 3 [1]
Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Adult Dib (Invader Zim), Adult Zim (Invader Zim), Awkward Crush, Fluff, M/M, Prompt Fic, ZaDr, ZaDr Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:22:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25388242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stargazer19/pseuds/Stargazer19
Summary: Dib has been acting strangely around Zim lately. While trying to do some research on the matter, Zim ends up discovering something about himself.
Relationships: Dib & Zim (Invader Zim), Dib/Zim (Invader Zim)
Series: ZaDr Week 3 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1838686
Comments: 8
Kudos: 75





	Strange Behavior

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! I'm sorry this is so short. I ended up spending a little more time world-building in this chapter then I meant to. This is the first time I've ever participated in a prompt week, so I'm gonna give it my best shot! Dib is in his early 20's in this story and Zim is an adult by irken & human standards. The prompt is Awkward Beginnings, so I hope this qualifies!

The house was dark. The lab was quiet. Zim didn't know how long he had been staring at his tablet. It must've been a while, though, since his eyes were beginning to burn from not blinking. The article pulled up on his device was taunting him. The alien's mind was a tumultuous storm of thoughts. Zim took a deep breath, remembering how he arrived at this situation in the first place.

It all began after the Florpus incident and the realization that his mission on Earth was for naught. Zim had given up on his invasion. The Massive was gone. His Tallests were never coming back. The irken had locked himself away for a week, coming to terms with the consequences of his actions. After lots of pacing and panicking, Zim decided he no longer wanted to conquer the earth, and he would find a new purpose in life. His decision was easier said than done. Zim struggled with finding a new purpose and eventually threw himself into learning all that he could about the earth. Might as well seeing as it had been his home for years and would continue to be. Months after his decision, Zim had approached Dib with a truce, which barely managed to last in the beginning. Dib had already been backstabbed by Zim, he wasn't about to let it happen again. Over time, that tentative truce became a strong friendship. Which led to hangouts, movie nights, and wasted money on gas station candy bars and Slurpees. Although Zim rarely admitted it, he liked his friendship with the Dib. Dib helped Zim learn many things about himself and the earth in the years after his failure. It wasn't until he graduated from Highskool that he had finally found his purpose.

Ironically, it was with Membrane Labs as a biological and technological researcher. Zim had always been skilled with experimenting, and he, surprisingly, enjoyed his job more than trying to conquer the earth. People actually liked him. When Zim presented his breakthrough in regards to naturally changing people's hair color through gene splicing instead of using dye, he had been praised for his ingenuity. He was finally respected, and life was perfect. Or well, it was. Dib had been acting strange lately. That was the reason why Zim was worriedly searching the internet on his tablet at three in the morning.

The irken had noticed a change in Dib's behavior a couple of weeks ago during their most recent movie night. They had been watching this stupid movie, and halfway through, two of the characters kissed. Zim had noticed Dib stiffen slightly beside him, but thought nothing of it because it was cold. So, Zim had scooted a little closer to the human. They'd done that before when it was cold, but this time, Dib had scooted away from him! The nerve of him, when Zim was just trying to do something nice. Several other incidents had occurred as well. There was the time he caught Dib focusing too much on Zim's face, or when Dib stuttered when Zim asked him if he wanted to go on lunch break together. Dib even blushed when Zim complimented something he did, or when Zim smiled at him. It was all very strange to the alien, so he decided to do the 'human' thing and search for the reason on google.

He was still staring at the dumb article that claimed all of these symptoms denoted someone in love. Zim refused to believe that the Dib was in love with him. The very idea was preposterous! Sure, they were friends, but they'd only been friends for several years. He huffed and looked at the first symptom. _Does he spend a lot of time around you, or come up with reasons to spend time with you?_ They did spend most of their time together, but that didn't mean Dib loved him. Zim sought out Dib's company just as often. He growled and scrolled down, noting all of the points and formulating his arguments. _Does he share your interests?_ Yeah, Dib had relatively similar interests with Zim, but Zim also shared interests with Dib. In fact, Dib only got a job at Membrane Labs because of Zim. Zim pointed out that working in the labs together would mean a way to create experimental tech for Dib's cryptid hunts without judgment from Professor Membrane. Zim huffed at the next point in the article. _Does he go out of his way to do what you want to do or make you happy?_ It was true that Zim and Dib often went out of the way to make accommodations for each other. However, Zim had to renovate the Voot Cruiser, so Dib could fit in it. The human had grown to be very tall, and even Zim grew some from his time on earth. 

Zim would never admit that he secretly enjoyed taking Dib into space. Occasionally, the two would take a quick trip to a nearby planet, or just sit in the cruiser above the earth and watch the stars. That was Dib's favorite thing to do. Dib liked to press his hands to the glass and ramble about the constellations. Zim would tune him out halfway through, distracted by how Dib's eyes would light up like one of the many stars he admired. And then, Dib would laugh with a joy that only Zim could bring him. Zim froze at the thought and looked back at the article. _Does he_ _often talk about or get lost in thought about you?_ He scrolled through all of the points again, sweating at his newfound realization. Zim fulfilled these requirements. "No! There is no way Zim is- is in love with the Dib! Absolutely no way! This article tells lies!" He quickly returned to the search page and brought up another article. And another. And another. But every article led to the same conclusion. Zim was in love with Dib. The irken quietly turned his tablet off and set it on his computer console in the lab. He, Zim, was in love with a human. For the first time in a long time, Zim was scared.


End file.
